What makes a good painting? This question is at the forefront of my exploration and experimentation. Through the tools of abstraction and other historical painting languages, I break down qualitative aspects of painting and question the validity of “seriousness”. I find answers to this question by making paintings though play. From my singular and personal experience, I deconstruct and synthesize information and styles, creating a hybridized personal painting vernacular. This hybrid is free from the pressure of art history’s clutch on painting and permits picking and choosing. This process produces representational pictures that convey emotions and energies of situations and individuals. The results are images of unexpected situations and narratives. The paintings function most successfully when they extend beyond just a hodgepodge of samples and create a more harmonious and trans-formative visual experience.